Defending champion Jack Draper caused a major surprise on Wednesday when he beat Novak Djokovic to make the quarter-finals of the Indian Wells Open. The British player fought his way to a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) win over the five-time winner in an intense game, tiring the 38-year-old Serbian in a dramatic last set. Draper’s strong will was the main factor as he just won the tiebreak to stop Djokovic from making his first quarter-final trip at Indian Wells since his title in 2016.
Djokovic acknowledged that tiredness affected him after such a demanding final set, and he mentioned a very long rally early in the last set as one that really took out his energy. Draper even almost lost the match when he was serving at 5-4, but eventually, he got it done in the tiebreak and now will be facing Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals.
Medvedev had no trouble in his match and defeated Alex Michelsen 6-2, 6-4 to make the quarters.
In other news, the world number one Carlos Alcaraz persisted with his fantastic form this year and outplayed Casper Ruud 6-1, 7-6 (7/2). The champion, on two occasions, played a nearly perfect first set and then managed to get through Ruud’s challenge in the tiebreak to make the quarter-finals for the fifth time in a row.
Alcaraz, who won at the Australian Open and Qatar Open earlier this year, is now 15-0 in 2026. The 22-year-old will be up against Cameron Norrie, who beat Rinky Hijikata 6-4, 6-2.
Besides that, Jannik Sinner narrowly won against Brazilian teen João Fonseca 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/4) in a very exciting match. Therefore, he will be playing against the American youngster Learner Tien in the quarter-final.
